Space Matters
At a Glance:
1. Russia-China may soon sign MoU for lunar research base.
2. US lands its fifth rover on Mars for scientific study and sample return mission.
3. India opens ISRO testing facilities to private enterprise.
4. US looks to reform its space based ISR and missile warning data systems.
5. For all Mankind Season 2, featuring a fictional alternate history lunar Cold War hits Apple TV.
The Great Game for Space:
Russia intends to sign an MoU with China for a Moon Research Base:
This is according to an order published by the Russian government and signed under the name of Prime Minister Dimitry Mishustin.
In the text, ROSCOSMOS, the state space company, is designated as signatory on behalf of Russia.
All relevant Russian ministries and executive bodies have agreed to let ROSCOSMOS sign the MoU with China.
Space News reports that the prospective Moon research base will be an international entity and not only limited to Russia and China.
The US-led Artemis programme also aims to return humans to the Moon; comprised of three successive stages, as illustrated in the graphic below. However, Artemis programme lacks participation from Russia, China and India, for now.
The Artemis Accords are at their core, broad principles that its signatories will adhere to for joint lunar exploration. These principles include ensuring interoperability, scientific data sharing and deconfliction of space. The list of signatories includes apart from the US; Australia, Canada, Japan, Luxembourg, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and Brazil.
The prospective Russia-China MoU appears to be an attempt at presenting a potential alternative to both the Artemis Accords and programme.
Whatever comes out of the prospective Russia-China lunar exploration engagement but along with the Artemis Accords it might have a more broader consequence in elevating geopolitical rivalries into astro-political rivalries.
An illustration detailing the Artemis Programme’s various phases
Source: NASA
The US Lands the Rover Perseverance, the Fifth of its Kind, on Mars;
A press release from NASA says the US has successfully deployed its fifth rover on Mars. The new rover is but one cog in a wider mechanism to return samples to Earth and expand efforts to detect signs of past life on the red planet. The new rover is expected to be operational for at least two years. It will serve towards studying the geology and climate of Mars as well as collect soil and rock samples. These samples will be brought back on NASA missions which will launch around 2026.
An illustration detailing the role of the Artemis program as precursor to future Mars mission
Source: NASA
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced plans for developing technologies that could build large structures on the Moon and in space. The programme has an annoyingly long name meant to enable a acronym: “Novel Orbital and Moon Manufacturing, Materials and Mass-efficient Design” or NOM4D. These envisioned structures seem like a natural next-step considering the objectives of the Artemis programme.
New Launches, Gear and Plans:
The Times of India reports that India’s space agency, ISRO, has opened its testing facilities to private players.
The development is a vindication of long-standing public policy suggestions urging the Indian government to make ISRO’s high-tech auxiliary infrastructure available to small private players that can’t afford to set up their own facilities from scratch. The move could help encourage private satellite and rocket construction in India.
The US is looking to rework its Space-Based Missile Warning Data Systems
According to reporting in Breaking Defence and Space News, the US is mulling a rework of its missile warning satellite Imaging Search and Reconnaissance (ISR) capability. The aim is to provide faster access to military units in the fray so that loss of life and materiel can be minimised. The changes are also meant to shorten the time it takes to supply targeting data to strike platforms.
Space in Media:
For All Mankind Season 2 - The second season of Apple TV’s, “For All Mankind” series just premiered on 19 Feb 2021. The show is based on an alternate (and fictional) history of the Cold War race for the Moon in which the Soviets make the first human landing on the lunar surface.
Interesting Publications and Resources:
1. An interesting Russian blog documenting all the declassified Soviet Spacecraft, Missions and Orbital Weapons uptil 2018.
2. An exhaustively detailed article by Space Watch Global that has a list of all the relevant Chinese Space Legislation.
3. A comprehensive list of positioning satellites owned by all major powers provided by Government of Japan.